The Legend of Korra: Hope
by maila08
Summary: There is a 50/50 chance Korra is not coming back...what will her children do?


Hope

* * *

_Walking down this cold dark lonely road_  
_I feel so much pain and sadness and hurt down in my soul_  
_Wondering will I ever see your face again_  
_And will the weight on my heart, ever be lifted. woah_

_Open up my eyes, I miss you_  
_Every time I fall asleep, I miss you_  
_I wanna scream and shout, I miss you_  
_Every day It's all about how, I miss you_  
_Every time I close my eyes ,I miss you_  
_Every day I'm walking the streets, to be near you_  
_When I drop my beat, I feel you_  
_How can I help you start to know how I miss you_

_I'm walking and I've got no place to go_  
_cause all I need is you right here_  
_running around_  
_I just wanna look in to your eyes again_  
_so I'm praying and I'm down on my knees_  
_trying to let you know how I miss you so_

* * *

"Mom!" Mac continued to scream once they were outside. He managed wiggle out of his sister's grip and ran back toward the door, banging on it with his small fists, crying for his mother. Karah went to his side and hugged him, causing him to stop in his actions and he hugged his sister tightly, sobbing.

"It's ok," the little Firebender managed to choke out, as her eyes became filled with tears. It hurt her to see her brother this way. He never cried and to see him break down like this, broke her heart. Her younger brother was a bit closer to their mother than she was, and this was a hard blow to him.

"We need to get going," Sytka whispered.

"I'm not leaving my Mom," the boy replied, whipping away his tears. There was a chance their mother was alive and he wasn't about to leave her.

"Mac, we don't know if-," his sister began.

"She's my mom! I know she's not dead!"

"Mac, she is my mom too. But Sytka is right, we need to leave. We could go get help."

"You just don't care! Mom needs us!" he yelled.

"Mac," Karah said, visibly hurt. "I do care about Mom, but we can't help her. We need Dad," she added putting a hand on his shoulder. Tears rolled down her brother's cheeks and he reluctantly nodded.

The sky boomed above them and rain began to fall. The three children turned toward the docks. The twins both looked over their shoulders once more before following, an arm wrapped around each other.

* * *

"We need to split up," Mako instructed as he and the parents landed on the docks.

"I don't think that's the best idea. We need to stay together," the Lin countered. The Firebender shook his head.

"We can cover more ground that way." The Chief was about to argue when Tenzin cut her off.

"Look!" he exclaimed, seeing five figures approach them.

"The kids!" Asami yelled as they ran toward them.

The adults each embraced their child, checking to see if they were hurt in any way. The twins jumped into their father's arms and began to weep. Mako held them tightly, happy to see they were ok. He looked up, expecting to find his wife…but no one was there.

"Where's your mother?" he asked. The twins simply hugged him tighter and their sobs grew louder. Mako froze.

"Korra stayed behind," Ami whispered, tears in her eyes.

"No," Mako choked out. Ty whispered something into her mother's ear and the Chief's face softened. The Firebender stood up, determined to find his wife.

"Mako," Bolin began putting a hand on his brother's shoulder.

"I'm going to go get her," the Firebender said through his teeth, shrugging off his brother's hand. Lin and Tenzin stepped in front of him. "Step aside," he warned.

"Your children need you," the Airbender said softly. Mako's hands turned into fists and he looked away as tears slid down his cheeks. The twins made their way to him and he pulled them into a tight hug. Memories came to mind.

_"You may kiss the bride," the man hosting the wedding said. Mako and Korra smiled at each other. Mako leaned over and closed his eyes as he kissed his wife. Korra closed her eyes and kissed him back wrapping her arms around his neck as he wrapped his around her waist._

_"Careful!" she said wiggling out of his grip. He blinked at her several times, confused for a second. "Careful. You're going to squish us," she said putting her hand on her stomach. Mako smiled and put his hand on top of hers._

_"I can't lose you," Mako told her._

_"You won't. You'll have a part of me," she told him._

_"You're a mom, Korra. You're a mom!" he told her with a smile. She smiled back at him._

_"If there is a life after this, which there obviously is, I will wait for you there and love you forever," he said kissing her._

_"I will also love you until I die, because I know our love was meant to last," she said kissing him back._

"Korra," was all he could say as he sobbed with his children.

* * *

The twins fell asleep. Mako kissed both their foreheads before closing the door. He stood outside for a moment thinking about everything that had happened. The house seemed so empty now that Korra was gone…for good. His thoughts were interrupted when Katara called out to him.

"Mako?"

"Yes?" he replied, clearing his throat.

"How are the kids?"

"They…they fell asleep".

"What about you?"

"What about me?" he asked, looking away.

"Mako," she repeated placing a hand on his shoulder. "I know it's hard…coming to terms with this."

"Korra isn't dead," he replied firmly.

"No one wants to come to that conclusion. And I pray to the Spirits you are right, but right now, given the circumstances, it looks like there is a possibility…"

"My kids don't think she's gone," he snapped. "They haven't given up on her and neither have I," he added walking away. She sighed and was about to leave when she heard a sob emerge from inside the room.

* * *

Karah heard her father shut the door and let out a sigh. There was no way she was going to get any sleep. So instead she decided to think about the reality that faced her and her brother: the possibility that their mother was no longer with them physically. She felt her brother move around next to her.

"Mac?" she called.

"Yeah," he replied.

"You couldn't sleep either," she asked, knowing the answer.

"No. I need time to think,"

"Me too," the little Firebender replied rolling over to face him. They both listened as their father talked to Katara outside their door.

_"No one wants to come to that conclusion. And I pray to the Spirits you are right, but right now, given the circumstances, it looks like there is a possibility…" Katara said._

_"My kids don't think she's gone," Mako replied with a harsh tone. "They haven't given up on her and neither have I"._

"Mom isn't gone," her brother stated. "I don't know how to explain it, but I know she is not."

"I feel something like that too," she whispered.

The little Waterbender put his hand in his pocket and took out his mother's betrothal necklace. The stone glittered in the moon's light as he ran his finger over the carving. Ever since he could remember she had worn it, never taking it off.

"Mom-Mom told me to give you this," he said handing it over to his sister. Silent tears ran down her cheeks as she took it in her hands.

"It's beautiful," his sister said as she put it on.

He nodded and let out a choked sob. He missed his mother. They heard the door open and immediately closed their eyes, pretending they were asleep again.

"You two can stop pretending. I know you're awake," she told them. The twins sighed and sat up in their bed.

"Mom is still alive," Mac stated. His sister nodded her head in agreement.

Katara sighed. "I know this is hard for you two. I don't want to believe it myself, but I don't want to get my hopes up, and I don't want you two to do that either," she told them.

"We will find mom," Karah said.

"And if we don't…I'm going after Amon. I won't be the helpless little boy I was today," Mac stated in a rather cold tone. Katara blinked at the child several times.

"I'll be there with you, Bro," Karah added in agreement.

The elder Waterbender sighed deeply at the children's words. She had thought the same way when she'd lost her mother. It was something that she didn't like to think about, much less discuss, but she decided the twins needed to hear this.

"I lost my mother when I was eight," she whispered. The twins looked up at her.

"What happened to her?" Mac asked.

"A Firebender killed her, Yon Rha," she said, her mouth twisting at the name. All those years still hadn't changed her opinion about the man. "I didn't know who he was at first. But one day, after Zuko joined our group, he offered to help me find him."

"What did you do?" the little Firebender asked.

"I took him up on his offer. Aang wasn't too happy. He said that I would accomplish nothing; that I needed to forgive him before the poison of my hatred changed me. But I still went after him. He had retired a few years earlier and I found him, hiding in a village. I knew it was him when I looked into his eyes," Katara said, remembering the day she lost her mother.

_"Just let her go, I'll give you the information you want," Kya pleaded._

_"You heard your mother! Get out of here!" Yon Rha yelled._

_"Mom, I'm scared," the eight year old Katara told her mother._

_"Go find your dad, sweetie. I'll handle this," she replied with a small smile._

"I asked if he remembered me. He did. He said he had raided the village in search for the last Waterbender in the Southern Water Tribe. That's when I understood what had happened. My mother had died protecting me. I was filled with rage. I showed him my power, what I could do, and launched ice daggers at him," she continued.

"Did you…?" the little Waterbender began.

"No," the elder replied.

"Why?" he asked, not understanding why the Master hadn't taken the opportunity.

"Because as much as I hated him, I just couldn't do it. I wanted to, but I didn't. I was strong enough not to. He was nothing. He was pathetic and sad and empty. I decided not to take his life because I wasn't the kind of person he was," Katara said.

The twins frowned trying to understand the elder's message. If they went after Amon, they would be no better than he. They wanted to get back at him for hurting their mother; for separating their family, but were they ready to deal with the consequences?

"So you want us to forgive him?" Karah asked.

Katara shook her head. "By taking revenge, a person is even with his or her enemy. But by passing it over, he or she is superior," she simply replied.

Both children let the words sink in and finally nodded.

"Now go to sleep," she instructed, tucking them into bed. For once the children didn't complain and lied down. She caressed both their cheeks before heading out.

"We will find Mom," Karah began.

"But we will do things the right way," Mac replied.

They nodded at each other and scooted closer, just like their mother had told them to when they were little and scared. Only a few minutes passed before they fell asleep.

* * *

It had been two days since Korra's…disappearance. Air Temple Island was a busy place as the adults held several councils during the day trying to discuss or rather decide whether the Avatar would be coming back or not. Mako picked up the newspaper and let out a large growl. Everyone turned their attention to him as he threw the paper on the ground and stormed off.

Zuko picked up the paper and his eyes narrowed at the front page cover: The Death of the Avatar.

"What is it?" Katara asked. Instead of replying, he handed the newspaper to her. All the adults approached her and gasped at the title.

"We can't let the kids see this," Senna said. Everyone nodded in agreement.

* * *

Mac played with his armband. His mother had given it to him as a gift for passing his Waterbending test. She gave one to his sister too, a red one, but she never wore it. Because of this he cocked an eyebrow when she approached him and was in fact wearing it. She rolled her eyes at him.

"Mom gave it to me. It just makes me feel like she's with me," Karah replied. He gave her a nod.

"Dad can't even look at us," he whispered. The little Firebender sighed. So she hadn't been the only one to notice that their father had been avoiding them.

"He's busy with everyone figuring out what to do about Mom," she said, throwing an arm around him.

The little Waterbender shook his head. "It's because we remind him of her. I have her eyes and you have her personality." His sister was about to reply when her father spoke.

"You do remind me of your mother," he admitted, sitting down next to them and pulling them into a hug. "But I haven't been avoiding you because of that. I just don't know how to talk to you two."

The twins remained silent as they let their father embrace them. They needed their father to be there with them, to tell them everything was going to be okay.

"I miss Mom," Mac whispered.

"Me too," Karah added.

Mako hugged them tighter. "So do I."

* * *

"Where are you going?" Karah asked as she saw her brother take out Apollo, Naga's cub. On a trip to the Southern Water Tribe, when the twins were younger, Naga had found a mate and gave birth to a cub.

"Memorial Island, want to come?" he stated as he put the saddle on. She nodded and hopped on its back as Mac steered the animal towards their destination.

It took them only a few minutes before they reached the Island. The twins got off Apollo and let him lie down outside the temple as they made their way inside.

"So what exactly are we doing here?" Karah asked.

"This is Avatar Aang's temple," he simply replied. It took the Firebender a moment before she realized what he meant.

"We are going to ask Aang for help," she stated. Her brother nodded.

The children continued further inside until they found themselves in front of the Airbender's statue. The twins looked at each other and nodded.

"We need your help," the little Waterbender began.

"To help our mother," his sister added.

"We need to know if she's still out there."

"And we want you to help us bring her back," Karah finished.

They stared at the statue, waiting for a signal, anything to tell them he their pleas had been heard. A few minutes passed, and seeing nothing, they prayed to the Spirits that their mother's past life could somehow help them and her. The statues eyes and the arrow on its forehead glowed momentarily and the twins immediately smiled at each other. There was still hope.

* * *

The Avatar lay motionless on the floor. Both her hands and feet were restricted with platinum chains. Burns, cuts and bruises covered every inch of her body. She had a large gash on her left eyebrow and blood dripped from her mouth. Her lips were dry and cracked. Suddenly, voices echoed in the cell.  
_  
"I miss Mom."_

_"Me too."_

_"My kids don't think she's gone. They haven't given up on her and neither have I."_

Korra's eyes fluttered open.


End file.
